Paper Heart
by blue-seme
Summary: Reno makes a valentine for Cloud, but can he accept his feelings? A Valentine's Day twoshot, Warning: Shounenai, cotton-candy fluff, lang. OOC


Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7, if I did, Reno would be my humpmuffin…

Warning: OOC, Language, shounenai/yaoi, Reno, Valentine's fluff, scissors.

"Talking" _Protagonist thinking… _**Author's Thoughts**

**Paper Heart**

(Reno Sinclair's POV)

"Reno! Reno, wake up!"

"Shut up… mmmghph, strawberries…."

"Reeeeno!" I crack open one eye, looking up into the stern face of Marlene, her fists on her hips as she glared at me.

"What is it Marlene? Can't you just go play dolly by your self or something…" I mutter, snuggling my face deeper into the pillow that my head's resting on.

"But Reeeno, you said you'd play with me…" Uh-oh, I look up again, and sure enough Marlene's on the brink of tears again. Denzel's sitting hunched up in the corner, and I can't say I blame the kid.

"Ok, ok, I'll play with you, just don't cry Marlene," I reassure her hastily, and instantly any sign of sadness leaves her face and she goes back to being cute and innocent like usual. _Crocodile tears… _I grumble mentally, but still get off the oh-so comfy couch and go along to play.

How did I get into this mess exactly? Well, let me tell you, it wasn't certainly by choice that I ended up babysitting these brats on my day off, and Valentine's Day at that.

It was Cloud's fault, like usual, when Tifa came to my apartment door this morning:

Ding Dong!

"Oh lovely," I grumble to myself, "Who could it be at this bloody hour, yo?" And I had been having such a nice dream, (_Spiky golden over my dark form making my toes curl_…)… I stumble to the door, shaking my head to clear my thoughts while managing to wade through the sea of random death that was spewed all over my apartment floor.

"What is it, yo?" I ask grumpily, swinging the door open.

"God Reno, it's 10 am and you're already drunk, half naked at that," comes the sarcastic tone of someone I would rather not be seeing after just waking up.

"Good morning to you too Tifa," I growl, taking in the image of the big-breasted, hand-to-hand combat specialist who was standing right in front of me. And I'm not drunk yo! Though I'm happy you noticed my sexy abs…" I grin devilishly as I run a hand down my (gorgeous) pearl-colored chest.

"Well, you'd better put a shirt on," she replies dryly, "I need you to come baby-sit for a while."

"What- you've got to be kidding me," I narrow my eyes suspiciously, Tifa trusts me with kids about as much as Cloud trusts me with his motorcycle.

"Unfortunately, I'm not. Now go put on some decent clothes on, I left Denzel and Marlene at the bar and said I'd be back soon."

"-The hell! You can't just- what about Cloud? The kids freakin' adore him!"

"Cloud's on a job and won't be getting back until tonight, I have to run this errand, and I don't feel comfortable leaving the two alone for such a long time." She turns away slightly, and it seems I have no choice.

"Well what about Rude? Or someone else! Can't one of your friends-" I ask desperately, I know that I sure as hell do not want to spend my free day looking after some kids.

"I already tried, Rude has to work. Trust me, if I could have used someone else, I would have." She turns away abruptly and makes her way over to the iron stairs that lead down to the first floor.

"Gee thanks," I mutter to empty space. Turning around I dig for a pair of pants and a shirt that isn't too wrinkled. After pulling on a black winter trench coat (it's minus 12 degrees for fuck's sake!) I hurry after Tifa into the freezing cold.

--

So there you have it, now you know how I have ended up spending one of my rare free days babysitting two little brats when I should be sleeping at home in my warm bed, only pausing to masturbate and drink vodka. The only thing that is keeping me from doing just so is Tifa's death threat she left with me before she went on her errand. ("Anything happens to either Denzel or Marlene and I'll personally rip your dick off!")

Considering my manhood's at stake, I am not partially inclined to do anything that might bother the kids, so the masturbating and vodka are out of the question. Apparently the sleeping is too now.

"Ne ne Reno, what do you want to play?" asks Marlene, as happy as can be, "How about house? You can be the mommy, I'll be daddy and Denzel's can be the baby!"

I cringe inwardly; playing house with Marlene didn't seem like the best way to keep my sanity.

"Um, how about we do something different, I don't think Denzel's as enthused that as much you are…" I trail off, hoping Marlene has a slightly more bearable alternative.

Marlene pauses, forefinger on her chin as she thinks, "Hmmm, well Tifa said it was Valentine's Day today, so we should make valentines!" She looks delighted with the idea, and before I can say anything she is off in the pursuit of colored paper and scissors.

_Well, it's better than being forced to impersonate a woman…_

"What do you think Denzel?" I ask the silent boy "Is that fine with you?"

"I don't care," he mumbles, shrugging his shoulders and staring moodily off into space.

_Cripes, it's a miniature Cloud… _I swear that kid gets more angsty every time I see him. I have a bet with myself that when he and Marlene grow up they're going to get married, nothing like already living with someone to excite the romance. Marlene handles Denzel's aloof attitude pretty well too, she seems to understand what he's trying to say without actually voicing it. I'm telling you, they work well together.

"I found lots of stuff!" Marlene is back, carrying a huge load of craft materials. Paper of all shades, pink, red, white, and some rather untraditional hues such as lime green, mustard, and navy are all stacked haphazardly. Tools like scissors, glue, and hole punches are included, as well as plenty of glitter, markers, and lace. She sets all of this down on the coffee table, snatches some hot pink paper, and begins to draw hearts to cut out.

Denzel and I both scoot in, and soon the room is filled with the noise of the cutting and crinkling of paper mixed with Marlene's happy chatter. Denzel is putting together a rather unorthodox card made of black, orange and teal paper with a judicious sprinkle of silver glitter. Marlene opts for a more traditional style, and soon the table is covered with white, red and pink hearts, each with a heartfelt message written in red marker and trimmed with lace.

As for me well, who can I make one for? It's not often that a grown (single) man like me gives out valentines, and homemade ones at that. I'm not really crushing on anyone at the moment either. Well, except maybe for… Oh shut up it's stupid… Okay, okay, I kind of sort of maybe really a lot like Cloud. There, you can laugh now, I know it's dumb. I'm pretty sure Cloud's straight, and even if he wasn't, why on earth would he like me back? After all, we aren't the best of friends, the Turks and Avalanche were enemies, and Cloud and I have had our fair share of fights.

"Hey, Reno," I look up, brought out of my depressing reverie.

"Who're you going to make a card for?" asks Marlene brightly.

"I'm not sure," I reply slowly, looking at the mounds of paper in front of me.

"I'm making one for Tifa and Vincent and Barrett and Cait Sith and-" I listen to her long list and can't stop my eyes from glazing over. I snap out of it when I suddenly see Marlene's hand waving in front of my face.

"Were you listening Reno?" she asks, looking annoyed, "I was saying that you should make a card for Cloud."

Huh?

"What, why?" I ask surprised, "I don't think Cloud likes me very much."

"I wouldn't say that, whenever he's talking about you he blushes," she giggles as I sit there astounded. Cloud blushing?! Now that's a sight I'd like to see.

"Besides, you're so pretty Reno, I overheard Cloud once and he said he's partial to redheads." I can't help but go red a little at this statement, It's true that I am very pretty (**Insert narcissist smirk**), but I can't help but think, maybe, just maybe…

"So you should make him a card!" Marlene interrupts my wishful thoughts, and I think to myself, _Why the hell not? _

And so before I know it, I've cut out a heart of red paper and decorated it with some artful black marker swirls. In my best handwriting I wrote Cloud's name in the middle, and I hold it up to the light to admire my handiwork. I decided not to include a message, I mean, what was I supposed to say?

It feels like only a few minutes have passed when I hear the door open and Cloud's footsteps echo throughout the hallway.

"Cloud!" cries Marlene happily, and she runs down to meet him. I sit there with Denzel, frozen to the floor. All of a sudden the card feels like something childish and silly. _He probably won't take it seriously… _

He walks in to the room and I swear the world turns upside-down. His pale yellow hair is windblown and his ivory skin has a light flush to it, everything seems to sparkle and I want to wrap my arms around that slender torso and kiss his – _No! Must… Stop… Bad hormones! _I take a deep breath and stand up to greet him, valentine hidden behind my back.

"Yo spiky!" I flash a forced grin at him, thanking Shiva that my voice doesn't crack. He looks taken aback when he notices me, _probably thinks I broke in or something_…

"What are you doing here?" he asks, giving me a slight appraisal.

"Trust me, it wasn't my idea yo, you can blame Tifa for that," and I explain the unfortunate circumstances that have caused me to become the kid's mind-slave for the day.

He looks like he wants to say something but doesn't know how to phrase it, and I'm twitching slightly at the awkward atmosphere when emo-child Denzel saves the day.

"Cloud," Cloud looks down, Denzel is tugging on his sleeve shyly, "We made valentines today," he gently pushes his funky card into Cloud's stiff hand. Cloud accepts it looking genuinely surprised and I can't help but marvel on how cute he looks.

"I'm going to find Marlene," Denzel smiles slightly and walks out of the room, leaving me in my awkward state. (_Sigh), better get this over with…_

"Um.. Clou-" but before I can finish he interrupts me.

"You made valentines?" he still looks surprised, as if he never suspected I would do anything so human.

"It was Marlene's idea, but I was a kid too once yo!" I move my hands slightly, the valentine is hidden behind my back and it seems to be awfully heavy for a piece of paper.

His surprised look shifts into a more teasing one, something that surprises _me _slightly.

"So who did you make one for?" he smiles crookedly and I know it's now or never.

"Well, um, _you _actually," I thrust the card in his face in a quick movement, my head is tilted down so my hair covers my eyes and I hope he doesn't see the red on my face that matches my hair.

The clock on the wall seems to tick unnaturally loud in those few seconds. He stands there, not moving, and I stay frozen in my awkward, half bent-over position. I'm holding my breath and my heart seems to break a little more as each second passes. I've just about given up and have started to pull away, eyes glistening slightly when he gently accepts one end of the card.

Startled, I look up, oh man… Cloud's blushing… (And what a cute blush it is, cotton candy pink dusting each perfect cheekbone.) I hate to sound like such a sap, but the air seemed to glitter around us.

Cloud's lips part slowly, and I hold my breath. "Um, thanks… I'm flattered," My breath comes out and my fingers loosen and Cloud takes the card from me.

"Wow Reno…" I look up at him, he's smiling that gorgeous crooked smirk again, "I never knew you were so cute."

My face flushes and I let out an undignified squawk, "Wha- what the hell!" I'm about to give him a piece of my mind when he suddenly grabs me by the waist and pulls me in for a kiss.

It starts out very sweet and innocent, a mere pressing of lips together, but then things start to get spicy. He nibbles on my bottom lip and ever obliging, I open my mouth slightly. A swipe of the tongue there, a nibble here, that's all it takes. I don't put up to much of a fight for dominance, its fun to be the uke once in while.

After a minute or two we both pull away, flushed and panting slightly. I wrap my arms around that lovely torso, nuzzle my face against his shoulder, and take advantage of the moment to just let myself relax.

"Reno?"

"Mm?" I keep my eyes closed, breathing in the faintly floral scent of his dark shirt.

"Tifa's in the doorway…"

I immediately spring back in horror, and sure enough, right in the doorframe is a furious Tifa, her face is scarlet and her massive breasts are quivering in anger.

"REEEENOOOOO!!!"

--

I do have to say getting beat up by a rabid fangirl / martial arts master wasn't the best experience I've had in my life. I was a bit miffed at Cloud too, he just stood around and laughed throughout the whole thing, (Cloud laughing? WTF!?)

But holy Shiva, the make up sex was amazing…

Owari –

**A/N: **Geez, was that not the diabetic special or what? I think my brain has exploded from all the sugar… But yes, this is my little Valentine's tribute. (I also made this sort of a opposite to 's fic, which is amazing by the way, but so sad!) This shall be my companion on yet another loveless V-Day… All hail Reno! My current muse and lover!!


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